Rev. Stephen E. Stults
St. Paul’s Anglican Church
February 23, 2021
1 Thessalonians 4:4-5 “That every
one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and
honour; 5 Not in the lust of concupiscence,
even as the Gentiles which know not God:”
From our Epistle for the day, we hear the beautiful
language of the KJV of the Bible. It is soaring, dignified, and stately. It is this priest’s favorite translation,
because I, like many of us here, literally grew up with it. How many of us when we recall Bible verses, have
the King James language come to us? I know I do.
Yet, to our modern ears, despite its beauty, the KJV may
be slightly confusing, or unclear. For example, St. Paul tells everyone to “possess
his vessel in sanctification and honor; Not in the lust of concupiscence…” First, what does “vessel” mean? Well, if one accepts that the body is merely
the placeholder or “vessel” of the soul, it makes sense. We know that our
spirits are eternal. Our bodies cease to
function, but our true life, our soul, does not. Thus, the use of the word “vessel” is
appropriate.
How about this word: “concupiscence? How many of us are familiar with that? Let us seek to understand it. Concupiscence has been defined as “strong
desire, especially sexual desire.”[1] That probably is the most common way of
looking at it. Usually some idea of sensuality,
or sensuousness, has been attached to it.
Also, in the context of the Thessalonians, St. Paul was condemning their
pagan feasts and festivals, which always involved a great deal of bacchanalia: wine,
women, and song.
For a deeper definition of “concupiscence”, consider an
older source: St. Augustine of Hippo, who died in the 5th century. He
held that concupiscence is a disordering of the soul, whereby the passions and
desires of the flesh war against reason.
One source says: “In its strict and specific sense, concupiscence is "a desire of the
lower appetite contrary to reason." Due to original sin, the lower
appetite in itself is unrestrained and seeks to pursue sensual gratification
without regard to demands of reason and conscience. Hence, desires contrary to reason arise and dispose the
bodily organs to tempt a person to sin. The rational will may be able to resist
such desires, but it is not capable of eliminating the effects they produce in
the body. Thus, freedom of will in fallen humans is to some extent diminished.
If a person resists the pull of concupiscence, a struggle ensues and the
sensual appetite rebelliously demands gratification, while reason, clinging to
its own spiritual interests, attempts to assert its control. Thus Paul wrote in
Galatians 5:17: "The flesh sets its desire against the spirit, and the
spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that
you may not do the things that you please."[2]
This speaks to one of the greatest dilemmas in the
Christian experience. Here it is: “If I am baptized and regenerate, I am a new
creature in Christ. Why then do I still want to do things that run contrary to
my Christian religion?” That is, why do I
(and all Christians) still sin? The
answer is concupiscence, or the strong desire of the natural man that rebels
against the rational (spiritual) nature of man.
An important point must be made here. Having the nature of concupiscence within us
is not sinful in and of itself. All of
us have strong desires to some extent.
The temptation to satisfy, or yield to them is not
sinful, necessarily. Temptation is not
sin. Some people feel sinful just because they feel tempted.
Beloved, be of good cheer. Being tempted is not sinful. However, the active
response and assent of the will in responding to that temptation is where the
sin lies. When you feel tempted, and you consciously assent to it, that is sin.
How then does “concupiscence”
fit it with the Lenten experience? What lessons can we learn from dealing with
it? We think there are many.
For example, why is it
recommended that “we give something up” in Lent, particularly something we like?
Is it so we can feel miserable and perhaps like a martyr? Are we saying, “Look how selfless I am? I am giving this up for God! Look how holy I
am!” Do you think God delights in our
misery, our self-denial, or our displeasure? The answer is No. Our God loves us
and wants us to be happy. Why then deny yourselves things in Lent?
It comes down to a question
of order and disorder, coupled with our need for God. When we fight against our
natural concupiscence, we are struggling against the disorder that naturally
occurs in all people. The natural man says,
“yes”, and the spirit says, “Better not.” When we say “no” to our strong
desires, we are asserting our rational and spiritual will against our natural
man. Said another way, by saying “no” to
our flesh, we strengthen our spirit. We are letting the natural man know who is
in charge.
Which brings us to fasting.
It is a most effective spiritual tool. The need for food is just about as basic
as it gets, preceded only by the need for air and water. As the old saying
goes, “Four, four, and forty”, meaning we can live for about four minutes
without air, about four days without water, and about forty days without food.
God knows that we need to
eat, yet when we fast, we not only discipline the body, but the spirit as well. Only God’s grace gets you through a period of
fasting. Lacking food, the hungry soul
looks to God for strength and perseverance.
Thus, the Christian grows
more dependent on God, and grace flows abundantly to that soul, making it
possible.
The same phenomena is applicable
to anything we give up for Lent. When we give up something, we are tempted to
yield to our desire to have it, and the struggle begins. Seeking aid, we call
upon God, and He helps us. We grow in
our acknowledgement of our absolute need
for Him. This is turn, yields great spiritual peace and centeredness.
Note a wonderful point about
God’s Mercy. In Lent, denial only lasts
six days at a time. Each Sunday is a small
Easter, in which we can relax our Lenten discipline... How gracious is our God!
Brothers and sisters be not
weary in well-doing. Persevere in
overcoming your own concupiscence. As
you do, may this Lent grant wonderful spiritual fruit, to your benefit and God’s
glory.
Now, to Him be all Glory,
Honor, Power, and Dominion, now and forever.
AMEN
